Paris Olympics 2024, Day 5 Wrap: Lakshya Sen Stuns Christie, Lovlina Enters QF

Let’s recap the highlights involving Indian athletes on the fifth day (31 July) of the quadrennial event.

On Day 5 of the Paris Olympics 2024, Indian athletes did not compete in any medal events, but still had an enormously rewarding day at the prestigious competition. 

Some athletes made history, some registered convincing wins, while a few did face early exits. Before we head into Day 6, let’s recap the highlights and key moments involving Indian athletes on the fifth day (31 July) of the quadrennial event:

Shooting

After securing two medals in shooting, India had another successful day with rifle shooter Swapnil Kusale advancing to the final in the Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions (3P), giving India a fifth shot at a medal.

Kusale's achievement marks the first time an Indian male shooter has reached the final of the Rifle Three-Position event at the Olympics. While Kusale celebrated success, there was disappointment for two-time Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, who narrowly missed out on qualifying with a score of 589, placing him 11th.

In the Women's Trap event, Rajeshwari Kumari and Shreyasi Singh both scored 113, finishing in 22nd and 23rd places respectively.

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Archery

Indian women archers also experienced success, with Deepika Kumari advancing to the Round of 16 after defeating the Netherlands' Quinty Roeffen 6-2 in the women's individual event.

Despite dropping the first set, the four-time Olympian rebounded to win 6-2 (29-28, 27-29, 25-27, 28-23), joining compatriot Bhajan Kaur in the Round of 16.

However, male archer Tarundeep Rai was eliminated from the men’s individual recurve competition by Great Britain's Tom Hall, who secured a 6-4 victory over the 40-year-old. Hall outscored Rai 27-27, 28-27, 25-28, 29-28, 29-29 to advance to the next round.

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Badminton

India's badminton sensation Lakshya Sen delivered a sensational performance as the 22-year-old stunned the third seed Jonatan Christie of Indonesia 21-18, 21-12 in his final Group L men’s singles match at the Paris Olympics.

Meanwhile, two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu delivered a strong performance, comfortably beating Estonia's Kristin Kuuba 21-5, 21-10. Sindhu topped Group M, securing her place in the Round of 16.

HS Prannoy did look a tad shaky against his Vietnamese opponent, Lê Đức Phát, as he surprisingly lost the first game 16-21. But he made a strong comeback to win the next two games 21-11, 21-12, and subsequently, the tie. Prannoy will now face Lakshya Sen in the round of 16.

Boxing

After a challenging Day 4, where three Indian boxers faced tough defeats, Tokyo 2020 medalist Lovlina Borgohain made a strong start to her Paris 2024 campaign. She secured a unanimous 5-0 victory against Norway’s debutant Sunniva Hofstad in the women’s 75kg Round of 16 bout.

Lovlina will next face Li Qian of the People’s Republic of China in the quarterfinals on Sunday. A win in this bout will guarantee Lovlina her second Olympic medal.

In men's 71kg, Nishant Dev defeated Colombia's Jose Rodriguez Tenorio 3-2 in the round of 16. He will now face Mexico's Marco Verde.

Table Tennis

While Sreeja Akula made history by becoming only the second Indian table tennis player to reach the round of 16 at the Olympics, Manika Batra, the first Indian paddler to achieve this feat, has been eliminated from the singles event. Manika lost to Japan's Miu in a 47-minute match with scores of 6-11, 9-11, 14-12, 8-11, 6-11. However, she will continue to compete in the team events in the coming days.

Earlier, Sreeja Akula, India’s top-ranked singles player, outperformed Singapore's Zeng Jian in the women’s singles round of 32, securing a 4-2 victory (9-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-5, 10-12, 12-10) in 51 minutes at the South Paris Arena.

However, her journey in the individual event came to a conclusion when she met the world number 1, China's Sun Yingsha. Despite putting up an enormous show, where she had a massive lead in the first two games, Sreeja eventually succumbed to the pressure and lost 10-12, 10-12, 8-11, 3-11.

Equestrian

India’s sole equestrian competitor, Anush Agarwalla, riding Sir Caramello Old, finished ninth in Group E of the Dressage Grand Prix Individual Qualifier at the summer games.

Though this result meant Agarwalla was eliminated in the first stage, his achievement remains significant.

At 24, he became the first Indian to compete in dressage at the Summer Olympics after securing the Minimum Eligibility Requirement (MER) four times to earn a quota for the country.

Rowing

India's sole rowing representative at the Olympics, Balraj Panwar, clocked 7:04.97 to finish sixth in the men's singles sculls semi-final C/D at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

This sixth-place finish earned Panwar a spot in Final D, a classification event where he will compete for a ranking between 19th and 24th on Friday.

Panwar had strong performances earlier in the Games, placing fourth in the first heat and second in the second repechage round. However, he was eliminated from medal contention after finishing fifth in the quarter-finals with a time of 7:05.10.